Mohan Bhagwat: RSS workers free to join agitations over Kashi, Mathura disputes

“Says that if he can keep RSS itself away from demand, other side can offer, “it’s only a matter of three (sites), take them”

Bhagwat asserted that the RSS has no role in selection of a new chief of the BJP and denied differences between the RSS and BJP government, both at the Centre and in states ruled by the party. (PTI)

On the final day of his three-day lecture series in Delhi, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat said Sangh workers were free to participate in movements seeking Hindu claims over the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi and the Shahi Idgah in Mathura.

Bhagwat clarified that while the RSS as an organisation would not spearhead such campaigns, individual swayamsevaks could associate themselves with them. “The Sangh will not join any movement except Ram Mandir, but swayamsevaks are free to. For Hindus, Ayodhya, Kashi and Mathura have special importance. Beyond these three, I have said, do not search for a temple or a Shivling everywhere,” he said.

He suggested Muslims should voluntarily give up claims over the sites. “It is a matter of just three. If they hand them over, it will be a big step towards brotherhood,” he said.

Bhagwat’s comments mark a shift from his earlier stance in 2019, when after the Supreme Court verdict on Ayodhya, he had said the Sangh would stay away from further temple agitations and focus on “character building.”

The RSS chief also dismissed suggestions that the organisation dictates decisions of the ruling BJP, stressing that while advice can be offered, governance choices lie with the party. “I run shakhas, that is my expertise. They are running the State, that is their expertise,” Bhagwat said.

Bhagwat, who turns 75 next month, fielded over 200 questions during the lecture series titled 100 Years of the Sangh’s Journey – New Horizons. He also spoke on issues ranging from the Sangh’s relations with Opposition leaders, internal frictions within the Sangh Parivar, to questions of leadership and transparency in public life.